"Dragonball AS: Ultimate Cell Saga"
Chapter 88- "Final Good-byes"

By- Tiny

Everyone who had once been dead and gone suddenly reappeared on the freshly restored Lookout, all of them overjoyed to back in the land of the living once more but some sullen due to what they knew was still to come. Some of them would not be around to celebrate the victory over Cell, including the pure-bloods Bardock, Vegita, and their mates, who had been transported to their home planet upon resurrection. It was sad not to get to tell them good-bye beforehand, but nobody said anything about it as Goku and crew reappeared on the heavenly surface.

The savior of Earth looked incredibly drained, clearly having seen better days, but still kept a warm smile on his face as he approached the crowd that had gathered on the Lookout. He was especially glad to see his mate, Chi-Chi, and it was clear that the others were overjoyed to see their own relatives once again, though most tended to steer clear of the brooding lavender-haired prince, Trunks. He had arrived with the others, Marron in tow, and those he had killed froze up instantly, but were a little warmer once Vegeta had explained the situation to them.

Most people had been a little more stunned when, after seeing that they were alive and well once again, Lin and Taya had pulled each other into possibly the most passionate kiss imaginable. Trunks had gone from cold and distant to greatly upset instantaneously and it took everything he had to keep from losing it right then, until Marron explained that she had known about things the whole time. Now the Saiya-jin prince stood calmly next to his mate on the other side of the Lookout, but was keeping a very close eye on his daughter and her girlfriend.

It was a joyous occasion, one that normally would have been met with great jovialness, but that was not the case on this particular day as everyone who had been at Enma's know what was soon to come. They just didn't think it would come so soon, as the group of other worldly beings known as the Kai's appeared in the land of the living, all smiling stupidly as they made their way to the Saiya-jin. They also instructed Piccolo, Gohan, the four original human fighters, and their spouses to come over as well, which made them all nervous as they figured out what was about to happen.

"It's time, my friends," Shin sighed, "Are you ready?"

"Not really, but I guess we don't have much of a choice," Goku sighed, hanging his head, "But do we have to do this now? I've had to leave everyone too many times without being able to say good-bye."

"We understand that Goku, but this has to happen now," Shin sighed, "Our absence from the next life is a very dangerous thing, but you have five minutes."

"Thank you," the Saiya-jin smiled, turning back to face his friends, "Sorry everybody, but I'm afraid this is the way it has to be. We made a deal with the Kais and now it's time for us to pay the toll."

"But why do you have to go now?" Goken cried, "Why can't you all just stay, even if it's only for a little while?"

"I don't know kiddo, but at least I know I'll be leaving the planet we all love so much in good hands," Goku answered, hugging his grandson, "Just know that I love you, all of you, and that we'll always be watching over you from up above."

"Indeed, though Kakarot's head has always been in the clouds!" Vegeta laughed, putting the young twins, one of whom carried his name, back down, "But we really are going to miss all of you."

"I'm certain that we'll be just fine," Kimuchi smiled, his face radiating understanding beyond his years, "After all, we have a planet where we would truly fit in now and gain the recognition we deserve. Things can only get better for our people after this."

"Right you are, young guardian," Shin interrupted the moment, "The thousand year period of peace and prosperity has begun and the universe will be a place of great happiness from here on out."

"See, then there really is nothing to worry about!" Brolly laughed, pulling Kathy close to him, "But we are going to miss you, all of you."

There were tears all around as the final good-byes were exchanged among the group, even a tender moment between Vegeta and his children, where Bra begged him not to leave. The prince was on the verge of a breakdown as he told her that he had to go and there was no turning back, which made her back off of him, but she wasn't exactly pleased about the situation. Vegeta couldn't say that he was either, but he was, if nothing else, a being of honor and he was not about to go back on his word to the guardians of the afterlife.

There were a few other moments between the warriors and their family members that were being left behind, mostly amongst the more numerous Son family as they turned to one another for support. Goken even proceeded to break down after hearing of the condition of his parents, knowing that they were never coming back to him, and feeling the pain of loss twice over. It was hard not to pity the young man who had lost the two most precious to him in the world and who was about to lose some more, since everyone else was losing them as well.

"It is time, my friends," Shin smiled, a tear in his eye, "Are you ready to go now?"

"Yes, we are," Goku gulped, standing next to his eldest son, "Go ahead and get it over with."

The one who was the Ultimate Kaio-Shin nodded as a bright aura surrounded the Kais, transferring across to the warriors whom they had selected to take their place in the Other World. The four lower Kai's powers passed on to the four human warriors and their mates, causing their outfits to change into a modified gi with the different Kai symbols on the back. The Grand Kai sent his own knowledge and such to the Nameksei-jin, Piccolo, who was the least overwhelmed of the crowd, as he was a former guardian himself. As for the Supreme Kai, his energy split into five and went into Vegeta, Diive, Brolly, Raditz, and Gohan, who all shook slightly before they finally adjusted to the new wisdom and strength they held.

As for Shin, he walked across the field and pushed his essence into the Saiya-jin warrior Goku, who smiled all the while as everything Shin had seen and experienced in life passed into himself. The benevolent warrior gave a small smile as the process completed itself, the brilliant aura dying down as though it had never been, and the Kai's disappeared as quickly as they had come. All that remained now were the warriors who were to succeed them and they simply smiled and latched on to their spouses as they too began to fade away to their new home.

"Good-bye for the last time, family and friends," Goku smiled, fading away with the others, "Until we meet again...."

And then they were gone, fading away into the sky as though they had never existed and leaving behind those who had either come to know, respect, or even love them all. Angela and Kyle, the only ones not related to any of the other Z fighters, just watched silently as the other warrior's hugged each other and cried, mourning the loss of their loved ones. Only Kimuchi, among the Z warrior's relatives, did not mourn as he saw his father and mother disappear to the next life forever, starting their new existence as the universe's ultimate beings.

The young guardian's thoughts were elsewhere as he gazed up at the sky, sensing a new bustling of life at some distant corner of the galaxy, his heart telling him that that was where he belonged. He could sense his grandparents, Bardock and Chive, on the planet's surface, as well as the Saiya-jin king Vegita and his mate, clearly mingling with their people once more. A small smile cracked over the guardian's normally calm and quiet features as he turned back to his friends and family, who all looked at him blankly as he began to speak.

"Everyone, now is not the time to mourn but to rejoice in all that we have had given to us by our forefathers," Kimuchi spoke loud and joyfully, "Dende, the time has come for us to use the Dragonballs once again, possibly for the last time, so that things can go to the way Goku and the others intended."

"And how will the Dragonballs help in that?" Trunks, who had been relatively silent, spoke up, "We cannot bring any of them back this time, Kimuchi."

"No, we cannot, but the time has come for all of us to go home," Kimuchi smiled, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder, "To at long last be with the people we have never known, the Saiya-jin, and for you to claim your title."

"Then what are waiting for?" Trunks smiled back, feeling his heart grow lighter than it had been in years, "Let's go home..."

NEXT TIME: The original generation of Z warriors and their spouses have ascended to the heavens as rulers, leaving a new generation behind to prosper in the thousand year period of peace. Now, things are about to be set right in the universe, but what awaits our heroes on the planet Saiyasei? And what does King Vegita have to announce to his people concerning Trunks? Find out in the next installment of Dragonball AS!!!!!!!